The Best in West Coast Florida Weddings

Sunday, November 30, 2014

While many couples wish to avoid the possibility of "Plan B" for their outdoor ceremonies, Alicia and Dave were quite the opposite. Both embraced the flexibility of having to move their nuptials indoors when the weather didn't quite cooperated for their early November celebration.

This is one of the reasons we love working at the Tampa Garden Center. There is a separate conservatory area to move the ceremony in case of rain AND it still looks out upon the lovely garden area. The couple chose gray, platinum and eggplant as their colors. Touches of pink (light and dark) were used sparingly in florals.

Even though Alicia resided in Miami, she made trips to Tampa as necessary to meet with our staff and made decisions on her menu and decor. The rest was done via Pinterest and email.

Her ideas included simplicity and clean lines with a hint of bling.

Alicia and her attendants enjoyed a leisurely time getting ready in the new bridal lounge at the center.

Photographer Will Staples was able to capture many details prior to the wedding.

Once it was decided to move the ceremony inside to the conservatory, event designer, Kent Billiter, set to work decorating our arbor which was adorned with silver bling buckles and clear hanging votive holders.

Elsewhere in the conservatory, we decorated the place card/ program and gift tables with gray and platinum accents. Rented silver chiavalri chairs were utilized first for the ceremony and then moved during cocktail hour around the guest tables in the main room.

The main room was draped on both sides with floor to ceiling fabrics uplit by dj service DeLite Entertainment.

After the ceremony guests made their way into the main room on the Bayshore side to enjoy an open bar service and hand-passed appetizers as chairs were placed around guest tables in the front of the room.

Deep Fried Coconut Shrimp and Gazpacho Shooters.

Alicia decided to have her sweetheart table on the stage at the front of the room. Our uplit "sail" structures created a dramatic backdrop. The bridal party and their significant others were seated at two long feasting tables on either side of the dance floor in front of the stage. The cake was displayed on the left; dj was on the right. Our empty glass cylinders down the centers of the feasting table would be filled with attendant bouquets after introductions.

The station decor mimicked the conservatory display tables with our in-house chrome vases but with added eggplant accents

Round guest tables seated 8 - 10 people and covered in our white in-house linens with our deep purple napkins. Instead of spending a fortune on fresh flower centerpieces, Alicia and Dave opted to have Carmen. her florist, furnish some large white hydrangea pieces along with our taller glass cylinders filled with orchid stems. The bride furnished all candles, insert cards and bejeweled table numbers. Some upgraded features to the guest tables were three runners and silver charger plates.

As the skies cleared, the photographer was able to capture many beautiful images of the bridal party outdoors.

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Alicia and Dave chose our Gold Medallion package with some hors d'oeuvre upgrades. Their menu included a tropical fruit display along with flaming station.

Their three tiered fondant cake was furnished by Sweet Tweets Cakery.

Our coordination services made certain there was plenty of time for all of the timeless moments such as the father-daughter dance. Also, there were several hours of non-stop party time after dark.

What was burlap, daisies, and vintage decor doing at a beach wedding? The unconventional: for Kira and Jonathan's November at the private vacation venue, Sunset Beach House.

Despite them residing here in the Tampa Bay Area, most of the couple's family and friends were traveling here from out of state. So a private beach house in Treasure Island seemed like the perfect option for a long wedding weekend.

The late fall sky provided a brilliant backdrop for the seaside celebration. Kira had worked with event designer, Bradley Dempsey, during her 12-month planning time. Untraditional in her approach, Kira simply wanted to focus on the comfort of her guests with an emphasis on the current trend of rustic vintage.

She decided to utilize large mason jars with her favorite flowers, daisies, with simple stems of baby's breath. Below is her concept table featured at one of our open houses.

Burlap (jute) runners and matching chair ties outlined the guest tables and she decided on a combination of pale yellow and cornflower blue napkins.

Kira further customized each place setting with a labeled mason jar favor.

Guests were greeted by a sign-in table as they entered the Sunset Beachhouse entryway.

Out on the beach, our pergola was simply decorated with fresh wildflower clusters from her florist.

An 8-person head table braced the late afternoon winds once the celebration began. Once sunset kicked in, things settled down for a calmer senario.

During social hour, we hand-passed an assortment of finger foods, from seasonal fruit skewers to marinated mushrooms.

During the ceremony to reception transition, guests were entertained on the beach with special customized lawn games.

The natural surroundings played into the photographer's post-ceremony poses with the bride and groom.

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Just prior to sunset, photographers from Your Story By Us, captured an emotional first dance.

We positioned the buffet dinner on the deck in front of the three efficiency apartments on site.

A few high top cocktail tables were scattered throughout the reception area.

After dark, the party got lively with creative lighting from the dj and Tampa Lights.

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Instead of a traditional wedding cake, Kira and Jonathan decided on a S'mores Station which we creatively designed with pre-dipped graham crackers clipped to clothespins on a rope strewn between trees.

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We utilized our paella burner as a "quasi" grill and had skewered marshmellow ready to sizzle over the flames.

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Toward the end of the evening, Kira and Jonathan led the way to the beach to set off Sky Lanterns.

Phone: 813-960-7092

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